Tinner Hill Monument
(Left Side Plaque): This monument commemorates the inhabitants of the Tinner Hill area who risked their livelihoods and their lives to defend the principles of the U.S. Bill of Rights.
Constructed by the
Tinner Hill Heritage Foundation
Dedicated June 5, 1999
President - Edwin Bancroft Henderson, II
Project Director - David Eckert
Designer - John Ballou
Engineer - Guy Razzi
Architect - Mark Coupard
State Sponsor - Delegate Robert Hull
Funded by a Commonwealth of Virginia Grant, the Wollenbert Foundation, individual donations, the donation of land from International Motors and the City of Falls Church.
(Right Side Plaque): N.A.A.C.P.'s First Rural Branch
In 1915, Falls Church ordered residential segregation. Many African-American homeowners would be forced to move. The colored citizens protective league entered a lawsuit to prevent enforcement of the ordinance and joined the N.A.A.C.P. to become its first rural branch in the country. As a result, the segregation ordinance was never enforced and was rescinded in 1917. The Falls Church Branch helped expand the N.A.A.C.P. into rural Virginia, setting a precedent for the South. Crosses were burned and citizens intimidated, but throughout the rest of the century the people of Tinner Hill preserved and successfully fought many battles against segregation.
Marker is at the intersection of Washington Street / Lee Highway (U.S. 29) and Tinner Hill Street, on the right when traveling west on Washington Street / Lee Highway.
Courtesy hmdb.org
